Review of Rang De Basanti

Rang De Basanti ………..Take a bow Rakesh Mehra, Aamir Khan, A.R. Rahman & Binod Pradhan (in that order!!!) I usually don't write reviews for many films nowadays yet my appetite for cinema is largely intact, especially for ones that doesn't want to stop only at entertaining, but makes you think and aspires to shape opinions, to alter attitudes. Which is why Maqbool will always get the prime spot on my large DVD collection. Which is why I can watch Swades n number of times and not tire. Now, RDB needs to be celebrated and discussed. No two ways about that. The film is a compelling view, superbly shot and conceptualized with outstanding performances from all lead actors, especially Aamir, Atul Kulkarni and Siddharth. You can't hold a candle to geniuses like Aamir Khan or A.R. Rahman. But more importantly, the film makes a genuine, honest attempt at bridging the ever-widening chasm between our glorious but poorly interpreted history and our dramatically altered present. Check out the line by DJ (one leg on the kal (past), one leg on kal (future) and pissing on aaj-today). The sudden cuts between Chandra Shekhar Azad plotting the Brits' ouster and a good for nothing cool guy 'DJ' (Aamir) balancing a bottle of beer over a cool 'amphitheatre' hangout in today's Delhi gave me goose-bumped hands. I don't think I have ever seen such a breathtakingly seamless transition between two eras, brilliant editing pattern that stays with you long after the movie is over. Music has never been used so powerfully for transition and communicating lead actors feelings to viewers (Khoon Chala at India Gate, Rubaroo in the climax….the list is endless). If we want today's Gen X to show some interest in our rich and proud heritage, clearly RDB is the most potent medium for it, and not dull textbooks and maha-yawn boring history teachers. And certainly not linear, unimaginative, irrelevant cinema like Mangal Pandey or Guddu Dhanoa' Bhagat Singh (Rajkumar Santoshi's was a sincere effort). The violent climax, while being provocative and hard-hitting, makes the viewers feel sad and yearn for the naive and innocent youth who lose control over their actions. As pure cinema, it undoubtedly is a remarkable movie, in genuinely original, one of the greatest films of this decade. Go see it dude, get inspired, get shaken, but please, please don't lose control.

P.S. This film would have been impossible without Aamir, his charisma, star status and exclusivity have ensured a sure shot hit both at the box office and for all awards!! Aamir has once raised his personal bar to new levels, way beyond DCH & Lagaan, despite a minor hiccup in Mangal Pandey. What a performer!